Tiger Woods has labelled Phil Mickelson’s controversial comments regarding the PGA Tour and the breakaway LIV Golf series as “polarising”, while the 15-time major champion says he “definitely” feels he can win the US PGA Championship this week.
Speaking to media on Tuesday ahead of the season’s second major at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which begins Thursday, Woods said he had not spoken to Mickelson since he announced an indefinite break from the game in February.
Mickelson will not defend his title this week having withdrawn from the event – last year’s victory at Kiawah Island, when aged 50, made him the oldest major champion in history – as the fallout continues from comments made public in February in which he said he was using the new Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf enterprise as leverage against the PGA Tour.
On Tuesday, Woods told reporters: "Phil has said some things that I think a lot of us who are committed to the tour, and committed to the legacy of the tour, have pushed back against. He has taken some personal time and we all understand that.
"But I think some of his views on how the tour could be run, should be run - been a lot of disagreement there. The viewpoints that Phil has made, with the tour and what the tour has meant to all of us, have been polarising.
"We miss him being out here. He's a big draw for the game of golf. He's just taking his time and we all wish him the best when he comes back. Obviously we're going to have difference of opinions - how he sees the tour - and we'll go from there."
Mickelson, a six-time major champion, sat out the Masters last month for the first time in 28 years. While his return to competitive golf has yet to be confirmed, the American is expected to make a comeback at the LIV Golf Invitational Series opener next month at Centurion Golf Club just outside London.
Each of the inaugural series' eight tournaments carry a $25 million purse, making them comfortably the most lucrative events in the game.
"I have not reached out to him, I have not spoken to him,” Woods said. “A lot of it has not to do with personal issues, it is viewpoints of how the tour should be run and could be run and what players are playing for and how we are playing for it. I have a completely different stance on that.
"He has his opinion on where he sees the game of golf going. I have my viewpoint. I just think that what Jack [Nicklaus] and Arnold [Palmer] have done in starting the tour... there's a legacy to that. I still think that the tour has so much to offer, so much opportunity.
"I understand different viewpoints, but I believe in legacies. I believe in major championships. I believe in big events, comparisons to historical figures of the past.
"There is plenty of money out there. The tour is growing - like any other sport, like tennis, you have to go out there and earn it."
Woods, 46, is making his first appearance since the Masters and only his second since a car crash in February last year that almost claimed his life. The former world No 1, who secured the final of his four US PGA Championship victories at Southern Hills, in 2007, nearly lost his leg in the single-car accident in Los Angeles.
"I feel like I can [win] definitely," Woods said. “I have to do my work. I've gotten stronger since [the Masters]. But it's still going to be sore and walking is a challenge. I can hit golf balls, but the challenge is walking."
On his 47th-placed finish at the Masters - his first tour tournament in 17 months - Woods said: "I didn't have the endurance that I wanted. I shouldn't expect [to win] because I didn't earn it. I hadn't done the work.
"As the months pass it's going to get better. I feel like I'm doing better. Taking a step back and looking at the overall big picture of it, [the Masters] was an accomplishment.
"But that other side of me says if I would have done things differently, I could have challenged for that [Green Jacket]."
RIVER%20SPIRIT
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Bangladesh tour of Pakistan
January 24 – First T20, Lahore
January 25 – Second T20, Lahore
January 27 – Third T20, Lahore
February 7-11 – First Test, Rawalpindi
April 3 – One-off ODI, Karachi
April 5-9 – Second Test, Karachi
AVOID SCAMMERS: TIPS FROM EMIRATES NBD
1. Never respond to e-mails, calls or messages asking for account, card or internet banking details
2. Never store a card PIN (personal identification number) in your mobile or in your wallet
3. Ensure online shopping websites are secure and verified before providing card details
4. Change passwords periodically as a precautionary measure
5. Never share authentication data such as passwords, card PINs and OTPs (one-time passwords) with third parties
6. Track bank notifications regarding transaction discrepancies
7. Report lost or stolen debit and credit cards immediately
The National photo project
Chris Whiteoak, a photographer at The National, spent months taking some of Jacqui Allan's props around the UAE, positioning them perfectly in front of some of the country's most recognisable landmarks. He placed a pirate on Kite Beach, in front of the Burj Al Arab, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland at the Burj Khalifa, and brought one of Allan's snails (Freddie, which represents her grandfather) to the Dubai Frame. In Abu Dhabi, a dinosaur went to Al Ain's Jebel Hafeet. And a flamingo was taken all the way to the Hatta Mountains. This special project suitably brings to life the quirky nature of Allan's prop shop (and Allan herself!).
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
FIGHT CARD
1. Featherweight 66kg
Ben Lucas (AUS) v Ibrahim Kendil (EGY)
2. Lightweight 70kg
Mohammed Kareem Aljnan (SYR) v Alphonse Besala (CMR)
3. Welterweight 77kg
Marcos Costa (BRA) v Abdelhakim Wahid (MAR)
4. Lightweight 70kg
Omar Ramadan (EGY) v Abdimitalipov Atabek (KGZ)
5. Featherweight 66kg
Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Kagimu Kigga (UGA)
6. Catchweight 85kg
Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) v Iuri Fraga (BRA)
7. Featherweight 66kg
Yousef Al Husani (UAE) v Mohamed Allam (EGY)
8. Catchweight 73kg
Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Abdipatta Abdizhali (KGZ)
9. Featherweight 66kg
Jaures Dea (CMR) v Andre Pinheiro (BRA)
10. Catchweight 90kg
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
FA Cup fifth round draw
Sheffield Wednesday v Manchester City
Reading/Cardiff City v Sheffield United
Chelsea v Shrewsbury Town/Liverpool
West Bromwich Albion v Newcastle United/Oxford United
Leicester City v Coventry City/Birmingham City
Northampton Town/Derby County v Manchester United
Southampton/Tottenham Hotspur v Norwich City
Portsmouth v Arsenal
THE SPECS
Jaguar F-Pace SVR
Engine: 5-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 680Nm
Price: Dh465,071
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Results
6.30pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group Three US$200,000 (Turf) 2,000m; Winner: Ghaiyyath, William Buick (jockey), Charlie Appleby (trainer).
7.05pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Cliffs Of Capri, Tadhg O’Shea, Jamie Osborne.
7.40pm: UAE Oaks Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.15pm: Zabeel Mile Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Zakouski, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.
8.50pm: Meydan Sprint Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: Waady, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
